Between Two Mountains

Chapter 1

Breathe, Adelaide. I clutch the book I was reading moments ago closely to my chest. The sensation arises deep within the chambers of my heart and sinews of heat shoot across my chest leaving red streaks barely visible beneath my skin. I close my eyes tightly as my body begins slowly folding over on itself.

Just breathe.

The once enjoyable chirping of forest birds begins to hammer at my skull. The sun's rays burn my eyelids as the breeze stings my cheeks. I can feel the current of the stream shackle my ankles as if wanting to pull them and me under its blue waters.

Count your breaths, Adelaide. I inhale and exhale evenly while counting each time my chest rises with every breath. I urge myself to make it to fifteen today as the heat in my chest intensifies.

It gets worse and worse every time, I think.

I am strong.

I will breathe.

I will come above this like I always do. I feel the strain in my fingers as I tighten the iron grip on the book I hold over the pulsing in my chest. The minutes pass painfully, slowly.

When I feel the droplets of water from the stream splash onto my cheeks, I feel the pain and heat slowly withdraw into the deepest core of my being. The pulsating slowly fades into the rhythmic beating of my heartbeat, which I know all too well. I hear the running water of the stream alongside my labored breathing as I try to relax the rest of my anxious limbs.

"Another one already?" a voice calls from behind me as soft footsteps approach my still crouching position at the side of the stream.

"They're getting worse every time and closer together," I answer trying to calm my labored breath, "I don't know if the routine and meditation is working anymore." I finally manage to look up and see the concerned look on Declan's face. I can tell he is trying to be strong for me and mask his emotions, but he's worried. And so am I.

"Well, you'll be twenty-two in a week...it's almost time," he replies. I turn my head away and look down at my toes beneath the moving blue water.

"I know," I reply softly. Declan cautiously sits next to me, still unsure what to do when I have my "hot flashes" as I like to call them, but trying to reassure me in the best brotherly way he can by putting his arm around me and hugging me close.

"You'll make it through this Addie," he firmly states, "I believe in you cause you've got the strength of a thousand moons and the purest heart. You're meant for greatness, you just gotta be brave." He snuggles his head closer to mine and playfully splashes some cool water onto my face with his other hand. I let out a laugh and return the favor.

"Thanks big brother. I love you to the moon and back," I smile. "I'm glad I have you in my corner cause I'm going to need you now more than ever," I reply trying to mask my nervous words. I take in a deep breath as my eyes flutter closed, taking in the peaceful sounds of the forest that have returned to surround us. In a week's time, I will be twenty-two years old.

They say that the second month of your twenty-second year of life is when the full ascending and transformation of a young wolf is complete. Until this point, little mannerisms and wolfisms begin to manifest in the forms of heightened senses in hearing, smell, and sight. However, this sacred time allows our kind full freedom and we are finally able to unleash the magnificent beasts within our being. We transform into the very creatures that comprise the core of our souls: wolves. But, like with everything else, freedom comes with a price.

Leading up to the twenty-second birthday, a wolf is faced with unsolicited fits of aggression, hypersensitivity, unstable emotions, and "heat flashes" ten times more painful than panic attacks. It feels as if the wolf inside is literally trying to claw its way through our fleshly mortal bodies. Why twenty-two? I have no idea. Something from ancient civilizations, two mountains, a Moon Goddess and the sequence two-two-two being an archaic, spiritual number. I have always felt connected to history and interested in the origins of the werewolf species, but who can keep track anymore. Plus, as I near my own ascending, the feel of every fiber in my earthly flesh consumes me as it throbs with heat, pain, and restlessness.

My brother Declan's transformation is the only one I have witnessed since he is two years older than me and we do not belong to a pack. To this day, I have no words to describe the suffering that he bore. Apparently, the ascending is also worse for female wolves than it is for males. But, the freedom of wolf form is supposed to be true euphoria.

I can already feel the very foundations that I have built my life upon shifting as my whole being is shifting. And I am terrified of what lies ahead.